Cocktail shrimp. Gibsons famous “garbage salad.” Salmon and tri-tip steak. Double-baked potato. Chipotle roasted corn and green beans. Individual cheesecakes, brownies and cakes for dessert. That will be the menu Jan. 1 when hundreds of Catholic Charities’ clients sit down to an elegant meal provided by Gibsons Steakhouse. The event started eight years ago when staff and the owners decided they wanted to give back to the community. It’s not just a staff-hosted event. Friends and family of staff volunteer along with some Gibsons clients. So many people attend the event that it was moved to the Montgomery Club, 500 W. Superior, to accommodate the hundreds of people. The event is a highlight for clients, said Msgr. Michael Boland, CEO and administrator of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago. “A lot of them talk about how they’ve read about Gibsons in the newspapers and stuff and never thought they’d be going there and having good food,” he said. “They have a great spirit there even though many of them have worked the night before,” he said. “It’s really a wonderful experience for our clients. I think that the [Gibsons] staff too feel that this is a really great way to begin the new year.” Kevin Arnold, manager of Hugo’s Frog Bar and Fish House, is one of the staff members in charge of coordinating the event each year. Last year the event was dedicated to Dave Cacioppo, a Gibsons staffer who volunteered at the event each year and who also was adopted through Catholic Charities. The group starts setting up tables and chairs at the Montgomery Club Dec. 31. Then at 8:30 a.m. Jan. 1, volunteers start dressing the tables. Various companies donate the food for the luncheon and other businesses donate the items for the gift bags. “For kids we have fun stuff like toys and books,” Arnold said. “For the adults it’s usually hats, gloves, scarves, socks and toiletries.” The event doesn’t just benefit the clients, it benefits the staff and volunteers too. “People love doing it. They have a lot of fun just talking to people and serving,” Arnold said. “It’s a really good feeling that they gave back. It’s a good start to the new year.” Arnold spent a few years in the Peace Corps, so he understands the importance of giving back to others. “I’ve always really enjoyed it,” he said of the event. “For me it’s an experience that has really helped me as a person.”